Diversity and Inclusion

On my first day at The Anti, Wayne Chattaway, our CEO, described my responsibilities as “CCR”: Culture, Compliance and Recruiting but the primary focus was always to be on culture. Fostering an open and supportive culture is paramount to our mission at The Anti. Maintaining that unwavering focus is my responsibility but one I thoroughly enjoy. I came to The Anti with a belief that supporting each other and celebrating our individuality is vital to a company’s success.

The month of June is recognized as Pride Month and I would be remiss if I failed to recognize the significance of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. In the early morning of June 28th, 1969, the New York City Police raided the Stonewall Inn, a well known gay club in Greenwich Village. The Stonewall Inn patrons had finally had enough of the harassment and social discrimination. Collectively, the patrons pushed back and held their ground and the riots continued over a 5 day period. While the Stonewall Riots did not start the gay rights movement - it did serve as a powerful catalyst to galvanize the efforts of equality and acceptance for all.

Equality, Acceptance, Diversity, and Inclusion - how and why are they important in the workplace? The importance of diversity and inclusion cannot be understated. Diversity is our individual uniquenesses we bring to the boardroom, to the water cooler and the employee lounge. A diversified workforce encourages productivity, increased creativity as well as employee engagement; a diversified workforce is good for business and also good for the employees. The reason “why” a company should have a strong D&I program is obvious. But it's in the “how” that is at the heart of every Diversity and Inclusion program. Fostering a culture of inclusion for all employees and ensuring all employees can be allowed the same opportunities are best practices.

On behalf of The Anti - thanks to the brave individuals who stood up and took a stand 50 years ago.Thank you for pushing the conversations, the actions, spurring the movement. Because of those efforts, I can gratefully say I work at a company that recognizes the importance of diversity and inclusion!